Viewpoint

Bols skipper Gordon Kay gives his thoughts on Peyron v Edwards and how his new maxi(s) is panning out

Gordon Kay, Managing Director of Superior Yacht Services and skipper of the Hugh Welbourn-designed maxi Bols has a unique perspective on the current Peyron versus Edwards unlimited round the world race contra-tent. Aside from skippering Bols and being the business brains that put together the deal with her sponsor, Remy Cointeau, Kay also has an even larger and more radical new maxi presently in design, due for launch in 2005. Up until Tracy Edwards' announcement last week, it had been planned to enter Bols in The Race and possibly both boats in The Race Tour.

"I think it is great that she has done it," says Kay of Edwards' announcement last week that she had scored £38 million worth of sponsorship from the Gulf state of Qatar for one of the most ambitious offshore racing programs ever - including two new events - one, the Oryx Cup, non-stop around the world starting in January 2005 and the other, the Qatar Sports Global Challenge, with stops starting from Qatar in December 2006. "It is great there is money coming into the sport and that there will be a greater awareness of yachting in the whole marketplace. Obviously anything that brings big money into yacht racing is a good thing in principle."

Kay is disappointed that Edwards' announcement may put both The Race, now postponed until 2005, and The Race Tour in jeopardy. "I think we have to recognise they [Peyron and his organisation] have done a lot of work, On top of that he has got a very big boat and he had the very successful event in 2000."

What we find sad is that ultimately there appear to be two camps whereas in fact for people like us, who have clients who are interested to do these type of events, it would give a great deal more clarity as to what is going on if people could work together in some way. It makes it very difficult when there is such a divergence of events when you are trying to explain to your client that 'this or this is a good option' and 'this is why you need to be investing your money'."

If both camps remain divided then it is conceivable that come 2006 Peyron's new big catamaran, due for launch next month, will take part in The Race Tour while Edwards' new giant multihull will sail the Qatar Sports Global Challenge. "It is not good for yachting if potentially you're going to have one big multihull that's not going to be on the same start line as the other big multihull because these people cannot work together," says Kay. "Perhaps I am being naive but maybe there needs to be less confrontation and more progress. The market place is just not big enough to take both events."

Aside from the conflict of events, Kay says that Edwards' announcement that the Qatar Sports Global Challenge will be open to multihulls but also monohulls of more than 100ft and this length limit places a question mark over the plans of everyone building boats of around this size with ambitions to enter this type of event.

"We're well advanced with the new boat," continues Kay. "One minute it is going to be a 100ft boat because that allows you to do the Rolex Fastnet Race and a lot of events that being greater than 100ft doesn't - maybe even the Hobart race one day?! Then Tracy Edwards comes along and says that her race will only be available to monohulls over 100ft. So where does that put you? We are so far advanced in the design of this boat that at the moment a thing like this could well throw a rod in it. This new boat will be very very quick and it could take part in any of these events. So 'only over 100ft' - where does that put all the guys who've built 90 (plus) footers like us [with Bols], like the new Zana, the new Wild Thing or Shockwave? We could have gone into The Race Tour and if we talk to people I'm sure they'll change it, but there doesn't appear to be any cohesion at all..."

Although the new G-class multihulls are unquestionably the fastest boats on the ocean wave Kay points out that there are now more maxi-monohulls than there are giant multihulls and their number is growing faster and so perhaps the singlehullers should be paid more attention? "The bottom line is that done properly one event can cater to all if it is properly and effectively managed."

In fact Edwards told thedailysail last week that the minimum size limit of 100ft for the monohulls was more of an indication at this stage that her event will only be open to monohulls of extreme pace. Kay says that this sort of vagueness doesn't help him when he is pitching to potential clients. "We know what we are doing for 2005 - we're clear on that - there are a lot of good events, but now when we go to talk to them 2006 is a grey area. It is okay - come along and announce your event, but really announce it."

So should an omnipotent body like ISAF put their foot down and regulate the world of offshore and round the world racing? Kay thinks this is a possibility, although he doesn't think ISAF the right organisation to handle this and admits he doesn't know what the solution is. Aside from the potential conflict between events he says in the maxi boat end of the sport there tends to be significantly different requirements from campaign to campaign, but particularly between those of private owners and those of 'professionals' backed by the corporate world. "Potentially there is always going to be a conflict because what we want to do is create brand awareness and profile and be involved with events that are going to be good for our client and that is not necessarily what the private owners might want to do, that involves sailing in slightly warmer waters and doing slightly more fun things - but still enjoying their boats to the max."

Fortunately Superior Yacht Services and Bols' program with their maxi is not beholden to one event and is diverse, involving a lot of corporate hospitality, record attempts and a wide range of events run by a number of different organisers. "Obviously a signature round the world event that does incorporate big monohulls is great for us," says Kay. "Luckily there are enough events all over the world that we can do our job very effectively, but if you start to get into the over 100ft maximum length and considering the direction that the Australians [the CYCA] have taken the Hobart race, then it makes a difference. The limit in length for the Hobart is 100ft but at 1.61 [maximum IRC rating] - one, it is not a very exciting boat compared to what you can do at 100ft and two what can you do afterwards? I have to ask why is it safer or better to allow small coastal racers into an event than allow a boat such as Bols with a Cat0 rating?"

Kay maintains that RORC have got the equation right with the Rolex Fastnet Race which allows all boats in up to 100ft be they monohulls or multihulls and regardless of their rating. "To be honest that's why there are 250 boats doing the Fastnet Race and 60 doing the Hobart race."

He adds that sponsors love the Rolex Sydney Hobart race and it is one of the most well regarded races in the world, but it is completely incompatible with his company's ethos to build the world's fastest maxi-monohulls. "We would love to do the Hobart, we had great success there with the previous Bols maxi coming first in IRC A but sadly the current regime stops boats like us and Shockwave, Zephyrus, etc racing there without seriously handicapping the boats. It is hard to get people to spend money to slow their boats down and almost impossible to explain to a client..."

Kay says that vital to their program with the Bols maxi is that any races they enter takes them to 'key markets'. (Obviously a potential downside for Bols' spirits manufacturer backer is that Qatar, in the heart of the mostly muslim Middle East, decidedly isn't a key market). However going to Asia is very interesting for them as is the USA. "Key markets - that's the most important thing. We have got the Olympics in China in 2008 coming up, so there's a lot of interest in Asia - you've got to take a race through Asia and no one does it. The Volvo doesn't do it but that's fine, Volvo do their own thing, but ultimately for people like us and the Nicorettes and Alfa Romeos, all with corporate sponsors, we all need these events to make a living."

The route of The Race Tour would be a much better fit for the Bols campaign, and Kay says that although it is not for his company he also likes Peyron's one design catamaran idea for this event "where for relatively small money you can get people in. And obviously Bruno has been into Malaysia and places like that to get peripheral sailing nations involved, to do an event where they can get to the start line and at least have the same boat and it doesn't cost a fortune."

Kay also has reservations about going offshore yachting in the Red Sea. "What happens if there is another massive conflict in the Gulf? You wouldn't go through the Red Sea or Arabian Gulf in another Gulf War. So is the region stable enough? I've sailed through the Red Sea five times and it is not safe and it is getting worse. Though with the piracy problem having a boat that trots around at over 25 knots is a bonus..."

Finally Kay believes that if the Peyron v Edwards situation ends up being dragged through court it will be a complete disaster. "They could be in court for years like the North Sails thing. And is that good for the sport? The answer has to be NO WAY. That isn't the way to start. It is hard enough to go out and find money, but you need to make your client feel very comfortable that what they are doing is an intelligent thing to do."

"I think it is all very exciting," Kay concludes. "It brings new regions, new money and new interest to the sport and that has to be a very good thing. We hope that this is resolved swiftly and we can all move forward."


Back to the Bols

This season Superior Yacht Services have been using the new Bols maxi to promote the 'Bols Experience' in key markets of the Baltic, including a number of events, corporate days and even a visit to St Petersburg. "We would have liked to have taken the time to do the Rolex Fastnet race and line up against the Reichel/Pugh boats, but it wasn't on the agenda and it wasn't in one of our target markets," says Kay. "We had the two record attempts which were aborted due to gear failure (wheels and vang), though both times we were ahead of the record. In the first five hours of the Round Denmark race we averaged over 23 knots which is like a 550 mile day and that was under just plain sails. So we are not unhappy with our speed in a breeze and she's okay in light airs…"

Currently Bols is in Cannes for another corporate week and then will be put in for refit. She is to be fitted with a new bulb and a ton of weight is coming out of the boat, leaving her hitting the scales at just under 22 tons - her original design weight.

Kay says that Bols have a very exciting program planned for the boat in 2004, although exact details have yet to be announced. "Come April we plan to be on the record breaking trail and doing various events which we'll announce in due course... We're not going to go round the world, because going on your own isn't much fun and we are ahead of where we were supposed to be with the brand already, so everything has got to catch up. We had extraordinarily good results in Scandinavia and the Baltic states this year for Bols. We'll probably be going back there next year to do the Norway race, the Denmark race and Sweden."


Next boat

Kay is keeping exact details of his company's new Super Rocket maxi under lock and key but one can imagine it will be a giant monohull with all the latest go-faster gizmos in terms of rig and keel. "It's so radical as to completely freak you out," enthuses Kay. "It will be in design I think until the day it is launched. It is awesome. I have got video of the model testing. We are now up to 2m models on the water, radio controlled and then we have got the tunnel testing in NZ in two months. You should see the model - it is just a rocket. It will freak everybody out."

Obviously we now live in a world where Robert Miller's new 140ft schooner Mari Cha IV rules the waves in terms of singlehanded speed offshore. Hasn't this scuppered the chances for 100ft monohulls? Kay thinks not.

"There are times when Mari Cha is really quick, generally in lighter conditions, when you are not in the planing business. I don't think there is a great deal of difference between the top end speed of both boats. We have been sailing comfortably over 30 knots a lot. We did 32 knots just under jib top with the main down after we broke the vang. In the Round Denmark race we averaged over 23 knots for the first 4-5 hours under main and code 3 jib. So the numbers that are coming out of the Bols maxi are pretty extraordinary.

"Where we wouldn't be able to match Mari Cha is when it is all about length. That will last for a while, but it was the same with the first one [ Mari Cha III] - it was all about length and then 85 footers were going past it [Kay is referring to the Pacific Cup when Mari Cha III was beaten by Zephyrus]. This one is obviously very quick and a great boat, don't get me wrong, and they did an extraordinary time. They had three really tremendous days where they did 500, 500, 500. Now, the difficult thing for us is that we know we can do 500+ mile days, but it is going to be easier for them to do it just because of the nature of the boat. It is like a 7 Series 5 litre BMW, doing 200km down the freeway and some guy with an Alfa Spider with a monster engine. One is gliding along with Mozart playing in the background and the other one has got his head forced back on the seat and has white knuckles. That is the fundamental difference - plus we get a hell of a lot wetter than they do!"

"To be honest it was a very impressive time," says Kay of the big schooner's recent west to east monohull transatlantic record, "and I think that the time will take a long time to beat whatever you build. If you built something that was 10% quicker than Mari Cha you would still struggle to break that time. It is just the averages and the weather. I don't doubt whether we can be as quick as that over 24 hours. Whether we can be as quick as that all the way across - that is the hard one. It has always been one of the hardest records to break and now it is really hard. They did a really extraordinary job."

Kay says that to contend with Mari Cha IV in a smaller boat you will just have to think differently. "We are pretty confident that our new Super Rocket at 100ft it will do all Mari Cha IV will in a breeze and more," he maintains. "Depending upon where our client ends up we are also sure we could do 120 footer and be quicker than her all the time...

"The great thing about Mari Cha IV is the challenge it sets everyone. Either you can sit and say 'wow, that is unbeatable' or you take the opinion that everything is beatable...eventually. As always for us the final dimensions of the boat are determined by the maximum benefit it gives our client. We are not private owners. We are most definitely in business and this is always our overriding priority to our client."